“So I just buy an approved Wi-Fi module and add it to my product, right?” is a question we’ve been asked before. The addition of a radio module can greatly expand the capabilities and value of a new or existing product but it does come with some extra burdens. There are often additional requirements for product marking and documentation that you need to be aware of.

Adding a radio requires compliance with the Radio Equipment Directive (RED) instead of the EMCD (EMC Directive) for European markets. For the FCC, the latter sections of CFR 47 Part 15 come into play. We are well equipped to assist you with design and testing services in your quest to demonstrate compliance.

We have experience with integrating everything from RFID/NFC to Wi-Fi (2.4GHz and 5GHz band), Bluetooth and Zigbee radios into customers products and can help you design, integrate and test these interfaces.

Performance of the radio interface and EMC often go hand in hand. Noise from the rest of the system can generate interference that causes lower bandwidths, reduced range and generally poor performance. This is a classic example of intra-system EMC and proper consideration should be given to system level design to eliminate issues.

Antenna placement is also an important issue for best performance. Siting the antenna next to metallic parts will de-tune the antenna and make it less effective and will also change its radiation pattern. Placing it near to noisy circuitry will degrade performance. We can help locate your antenna in the best position possible and tune it for best performance.